Comparison of the Effects of Sensorimotor Rhythm and Slow Cortical Potential Neurofeedback in Epilepsy

Current conventional epilepsy treatments do not always aim to improve epilepsy comorbidities. For a treatment to be effective, is not necessary for it to keep the patient seizure-free; it is sufficient to show improvement in functions to help people who suffer from epilepsy to become more independent and productive in life. There is an urgent need to explore non- pharmaceutical/non-invasive interventions that can help in that regard. The earlier patients are treated with this condition, the more likely it is to prevent severe disabilities over time. Neurofeedback is a self-modulatory brain activity oscillatory intervention that previous researchers have found to reduce seizure frequency in patients with epilepsy. The aim of this work was to compare two Neurofeedback techniques that have shown some efficacy in improving symptoms in epilepsy. The novelty of this study is to explore further and included clinical, neurophysiological and cognitive outcomes in order to assess in more detail the effectiveness of epilepsy comorbidities. Forty-four patients, between the ages of 12 and 18 years, and diagnosed with focal epilepsy, divided randomly into three groups: sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) training, slow cortical potential (SCP) training, and control. The patients completed 25 sessions of intervention. The results showed that the SMR group training had an advantage in improving reaction time compared with SCP and control. Regression analysis revealed a significant correlation between the patients who learned to modify their brain activity in the SMR group and improving reaction time in two different tasks. In addition, the quality of life scale significantly improved in all three groups. The study supplies preliminary data to support that SMR neurofeedback training as an intervention should further be explored as a therapeutic option for children who suffer from focal epilepsy.CONACYT (Mexican Council of science and technology